ArtInMotionPersians

16 hours ago, Jarro said:

Thank you for your review!! We are booked for next Friday, and I am debating whether to upgrade the drink package.  It’s worth it or it’s not necessary? 

I'll be there with you!  (There's a fairly active FB sailing group & I started one here, but so far I'm the only member.)

We cruised NCL in Sept & again the last week of Feb.  I found no reason to get the upgraded drink package, all our usual favorites are on the standard package.  It seems to be more about top shelf and whole bottles of wine - the same wines by the glass are in the standard package.

On 3/10/2022 at 8:05 AM, Redsky5292 said:

If you haven't made final payment yet you can cancel and rebook at the lower rate.  We've done that before.  However, your perks might change depending on the new booking.

This is how we handled the issue as well.

No longer an NCL policy.

Can you do drug store testing?  (We've done that twice now, for FL ports.)

How/why are you testing at port?

We fly into FLL, take the train (station at the airport) to MIA, then uber.

We enjoyed the ship and layout very much.  Yes, it's older, but quite charming - old school fancy; woodwork, glass, brass.  Lots of outdoor space.

It's been a few years, so take that into consideration.... The passengers were about half in the 30-50 age group, there was about two dozen teens.  The entertainment was focused on the 60+ age group.  The bands, the shows, even the late night dance parties.  I now know every word to Sweet Caroline, Mustang Sally, and Proud Mary - I learned them on 80s night.  😑   The teens were bored to death, there was just nothing for them, thus with endless teen energy, they ended up making themselves a horrible nuisance.  It was nice to see the older crowd really enjoy their music every night, that made us smile.

LOVED Harvest Caye!  

There are floats/toys to play on in the water at the beach.

We swam in ocean and pool, enjoyed the little wildlife area, and relaxed on a lounger.

Peaceful, no hawkers, no pressure to do anything, just left alone to do whatever interested you or nothing at all.

34 minutes ago, cruiserbear55 said:

There was some talk on here a few months back that you couldn't put a hole in the card or you would destroy the embedded electronics. Anyone?

Correct. You need the lanyard with the plastic pouch for the card to go in.

18 hours ago, complawyer said:

unfortunately no!. you can try and make arrangements with the concierge but they will have to pay for their meals.

Bummer, thank you for the prompt reply.  🙂

We are leaving on the Dawn this Sunday.

We have been upgraded to a "Family Suite" and our friends a "Mini Suite".

From the website I'm understanding we have a Butler (omg) and special breakfast and lunch options.

Will our friends in the Mini Suite have the same breakfast & lunch options?

11 minutes ago, libtrek said:

Update: we are at sea so can’t use phone. Hoping to connect tomorrow to get updates for getting our patient back home. So far he is resting comfortably and being a bit of a smart…., always a good sign.

Sass is always a good sign!  ❤️ 

I have also been thru this experience, it's unimaginably overwhelming.  Not NCL, but the ship, either an officer or medical staff, called every day to check on us and requested an update.  This continued until I arrived home a month later.  They helped me secure transportation home from another country; this was extremely difficult in our situation.  They contacted the Ambassador to the US for me, to contact me and assist with arrangements.  I can't begin to explain what a comfort this was and how much assistance they were. 

Nassau - the little beach right beside the dock has several shacks selling drinks, snacks and wifi passwords super cheap.  (like $5 for all three)

I sent to ShareholderBenefit@ncl.com on 1/31, received notification of the credit today, 2/2, and it shows in our vacation summary.

Looks like Gem is also late leaving, FB chatter is late flights due to the nor'easter.

Looks like Gem is also late leaving, FB chatter is late flights due to the nor'easter.

Which port is it?

https://rodewayfll.com/hotels/hotel-ft-lauderdale.html

Rodeway Inn Ft Lauderdale.

Pick up from Airport & they do transportation to Miami Port (I think it was $20).  Fleet of buses; very, very organized.

General Store in lobby, restaurant/bar on site, free full breakfast, pool, cute photo op items around property, laundry room, very clean, wonderful staff. 

Beer, limited wine, limited cocktails, soda.

The big thing we noticed was nothing frozen.

Good snacks, fun "piano" (keyboard) bar on the Encore.

Cancelled 12/17, refund 12/31.

12 minutes ago, kfnesq said:

At any rate, we spent a lot of time in the outside venues 

#1 - I'd recommend moving this discussion to one of the FB groups - those aren't magically vanishing.  🤣

#2 - kfnesq - Were you able to find seating/space outside?  We've always preferred the outdoor venues but always have trouble finding available seating.  I was thinking along the line of your advice/experience, we can just be outside most the time, but if everyone has that idea, maybe it's not doable.  🤔

On 12/6/2021 at 9:02 PM, melodyesch said:

Hi All.  DH and I will be on the Encore this Sunday (Yay!) and I have a couple of specific questions:

 

1.  We always take our large Tervis cups and fill them at the beverage station.  We get a clean ship cup and use that to fill our personal cup.  The personal cup does not ever touch the dispenser.  I’ve seen others do that, but of course the signs say don’t fill your personal cup.  I asked a crew member on our last trip pre-COVID and they said it was perfectly fine to do it that way.  But we ALWAYS seem to get the stink eye from a passenger or two, even though we try to do it when there is no beverage traffic.  Thoughts on this?

 

2.  There is a menu item (like the Fruits de Mer in Le Bistro) that contains shrimp, scallops and crab.  I cannot eat scallops but LOVE shrimp.  I haven’t made a complete study of all of the menus, but it’s common to see shrimp with scallops.  Would you ask for extra shrimp to be added and the scallops to be left off?  Obviously I know I can ASK for anything, but didn’t know if that might seem unreasonable?  
 

thanks!

melody

We were on the Encore in Sept.

#1 Yes, I always do this so I have a lidded (safer) cup.  Most the bartenders filled my cup as well.

#2 I don't like scallops & love shrimp; never saw them in the same dish.  

On 12/2/2021 at 5:17 PM, ChiefMateJRK said:

Well, you mentioned it was too "formal" when you randomly walked through.  Did you come back to hear her at any other time?  I probably logged 12 hours listening to Alexa on our October cruise and I have no idea what you mean by "formal."

OK odd.  👀  But I'll respectfully respond.

I didn't say "too formal", I said "more formal", you can scroll up to review the post.

I'm happy to hear you enjoyed so much time listening to her, we witnessed quite a few fellow passengers enjoying their experience as well.  To us, it felt like an opera singer in an art gallery, which is an awesome experience; we're more sing-along with sober plus karaoke volunteers at the local pub.

Formal =  Hair Up, full make up, jewelry, evening gown, sequins.  Very structured, no one singing along, no requests, no ad lib lyrics, no silliness.  Music sounded old rat pack, broadway, nothing we recognized exactly, slightly familiar, quite pleasant.  Very talented performer, dressed to the nines, in charge of her room. Classy.  Mad respect, but just not our thing, enjoyable in passing.

No, we never came back just to hear her - she wasn't a draw for us, nor was the crowded observation lounge.  We did what we enjoyed; the near vacant waterfront area or our balcony for viewing (it was worth it to be cold for the "front row seat") and the less formal, more spontaneous music/performers.

Everyone enjoys something different, that's why they employ multiple different performers and different venues.  It's not personal, it's simply that your preferences aren't ours.  And that's the beauty of these boards, you get opinions and thoughts from across the spectrum of cruisers.

On 11/30/2021 at 5:33 PM, ChiefMateJRK said:

The dailies indicate the "theme" for each of Alexa's hours.  

Yes, per usual.  Same as for the other musicians, per usual.